UPSC Prelims Practice Questions — Keralam asks govt. to accept State’s revised ESA proposal

Q1. With reference to the process of declaring the Western Ghats an Ecologically Sensitive Area (ESA), consider the following statements: Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

  1. A draft ESA notification gives the public a fixed window to file objections before the Union government decides on the final notification.
  2. After the Supreme Court declined to entertain a petition against the Gadgil and Kasturirangan reports, the Union government was legally obliged to finalise the ESA notification.
  3. A fresh draft ESA notification can supersede an earlier draft that was never finalised.
  • A. 1 only
  • B. 1, 2 and 3
  • C. 2 and 3 only
  • D. 1 and 3 only

Q2. Consider the following statements: Which of the following is correct in respect of the above statements?

  1. As of October 2026, the Ecologically Sensitive Area for the Western Ghats has been proposed only through successive draft notifications, and no final notification has been issued.
  2. A draft ESA notification cannot be finalised until the Legislative Assembly of each State concerned passes a resolution concurring with it.
  • A. Both Statement-I and Statement-II are correct and Statement-II explains Statement-I
  • B. Both Statement-I and Statement-II are correct, but Statement-II does not explain Statement-I
  • C. Statement-I is correct, but Statement-II is incorrect
  • D. Statement-I is incorrect, but Statement-II is correct

Q3. With reference to the expert reports on protecting the Western Ghats, consider the following statements: Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

  1. The Kasturirangan High-Level Working Group placed the cultural landscape under a permit-based regime of graded restrictions.
  2. The Gadgil panel treated the entire Western Ghats as ecologically sensitive but varied the permitted activities by zone, according to ecological richness and land use.
  3. The Kasturirangan High-Level Working Group designed its ESA as a prohibitory regime aimed at the most destructive activities, such as mining and red-category industries.
  • A. 1, 2 and 3
  • B. 2 and 3 only
  • C. 3 only
  • D. 1 and 2 only

Q4. Consider the following statements: Which of the following is correct in respect of the above statements?

  1. The Western Ghats are on the World Heritage List as a serial property made up of many separate component sites, not as one continuous area.
  2. The Western Ghats run through six Indian States, from Gujarat in the north to Kerala and Tamil Nadu in the south.
  • A. Both Statement-I and Statement-II are correct and Statement-II explains Statement-I
  • B. Both Statement-I and Statement-II are correct, but Statement-II does not explain Statement-I
  • C. Statement-I is correct, but Statement-II is incorrect
  • D. Statement-I is incorrect, but Statement-II is correct

Q5. In the context of the Keralam Legislative Assembly's resolution on the Western Ghats Ecologically Sensitive Area, consider the following statements: Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

  1. A resolution of a State Legislative Assembly urging the Union government to accept the State's proposal does not, by itself, bind the Union government when it finalises the notification.
  2. The power to issue the final Western Ghats ESA notification lies with the Union government, not with the governments of the States it covers.
  3. Because the ESA spans more than one State, its final notification must be ratified by the Legislatures of at least half of the States it covers.
  • A. 1 and 2 only
  • B. 2 and 3 only
  • C. 1, 2 and 3
  • D. 1 only

Q6. Consider the following assertion: An Ecologically Sensitive Area regime in the Western Ghats can help reduce landslide risk, and not merely conserve biodiversity. Which of the statements given above support/supports the assertion?

  1. The Kasturirangan High-Level Working Group recommended banning all mining, including quarrying, within the ESA.
  2. The July 2024 draft ESA notification was issued a day after the Wayanad landslides.
  3. The Kasturirangan High-Level Working Group recommended banning building and construction projects above a specified size within the ESA.
  • A. 2 and 3 only
  • B. 1 only
  • C. 1 and 3 only
  • D. 1, 2 and 3

Q7. With reference to the July 2024 draft notification on the Western Ghats Ecologically Sensitive Area, consider the following statements: Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

  1. The draft does not confine the ESA to forest land; it extends to revenue villages that contain human habitation.
  2. The draft adopts the Gadgil panel's approach of treating the entire Western Ghats range as ecologically sensitive.
  • A. 1 only
  • B. 2 only
  • C. Both 1 and 2
  • D. Neither 1 nor 2